Abstract
Innovative technologies allow organizations to remain competitive in the market and increase their profitability. These driving factors have led to the adoption of several emerging technologies and no other trend has created more of an impact than Industry 4.0 in recent years. This is an umbrella term that encompasses several digital technologies that are geared toward automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies and processes. These include but are not limited to several latest technological developments such as cyber-physical systems, digital twins, Internet of Things, cloud computing, cognitive computing, and artificial intelligence. Within the context of Industry 4.0, additive manufacturing (AM) is a crucial element. AM is also an umbrella term for several manufacturing techniques capable of manufacturing products by adding layers on top of each other. These technologies have been widely researched and implemented to produce homogeneous and heterogeneous products with complex geometries. This paper focuses on the interrelationship between AM and other elements of Industry 4.0. A comprehensive AM-centric literature review discussing the interaction between AM and Industry 4.0 elements whether directly (used for AM) or indirectly (used with AM) has been presented. Furthermore, a conceptual digital thread integrating AM and Industry 4.0 technologies has been proposed. The need for such interconnectedness and its benefits have been explored through the content-centric literature review. Development of such a digital thread for AM will provide significant benefits, allow companies to respond to customer requirements more efficiently, and will accelerate the shift toward smart manufacturing.
Highlights
The fourth industrial revolution called Industry 4.0has made an enormous impact on academia, government policymaking, and industrial sectors.Extensive research is being undertaken to utilize Industry 4.0 for improving business models, product quality, employee skills, communications, and supply chains [2,3,4,5]
There should be a strong focus on university-industry collaboration and technology transfer as well as education and training [42,43]. This shows a clear need for understanding the role of additive manufacturing (AM) as a pillar for Industry 4.0 and how it fits into the context of the digitalization of manufacturing
This paper aims to shed light on this aspect to accelerate the development of an integrated AM digital thread encompassing all Industry 4.0 pillars
Summary
The fourth industrial revolution called Industry 4.0 (named after Germany’s Industrie 4.0 [1]). Different countries have different names for Industry 4.0 such as the “Industrial Internet” or “Advanced Manufacturing” in the United States, “Factories of the Future”. There is no widely accepted definition for Industry 4.0 because of several reasons: no clear framework or boundaries for enabling technologies, rapid innovation of technology and its usage, differing needs of policymakers, businesses, and academics [9]. Industry 4.0 uses a series of enabling technologies that can be categorized into nine pillars [10]. These are the technologies that have the most applications. 2 of that can be categorized into nine pillars [10] These are the technologies that have the most under the Industry.
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